We all face hardships in this obsessive hobby that we've entered. I thought that sharing them may either give you a chance to rant or actually give someone else a chance to help (either through advice or some other way). Let everyone know what is bugging you.

Here are mine:

I need a loose Kitik Keed'kak for my diorama. They seem to never show up loose on ebay, and the packaged ones are expensive.

Same complaint for my Jedi Council diorama in terms of Trebor Coleman and Pablo-Jill.

I also need one Jedi Council chair, and I don't feel like spending $30 for it.

Xizor. My kids dented mine. I've bought four off ebay, and they all come damaged. Was mine the last mint version that existed?

G3-5LE. Someone bought one for me at Disney, kept it for four months, and dented the heck out of it. I seem to only find them as a set on ebay.

Yakface. I never got it back in '83 ('84?). I figure this will be the last figure I buy when it all goes away (fitting, no?).

What are your problems?

Patient Zero

03-21-2006, 09:43 AM

Yakface. I never got it back in '83 ('84?). I figure this will be the last figure I buy when it all goes away (fitting, no?).

Um, granted my memory is a bit rusty, but wasn't there another one released around 98'?

2-1B

03-21-2006, 11:44 AM

Jonna, it was in 1997, silly. :crazed:

Patient Zero

03-21-2006, 11:48 AM

Jonna, it was in 1997, silly. :crazed:

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! lol

jedi master sal

03-21-2006, 11:48 AM

For me the biggest headaches are:
• General lack of figures
• Specifically lack of army builders, with even more focus on Clones.
• Too many damn exclusives. Hasbro, we all go to ALL of the major retailers (If they are around us), so exclusives don't make a hell of a lot of sense. It just makes me have to get up early on a Saturday morning in the cold. Because I'm p!ssed that I had to do that, I WON'T buy anything else (non-star wars) from that store, at least in that particular moment.

In fact the more a specific store has an exclusive (more specifically an OVERPRICED exclusive) the less and LESS I buy from them. Certainly with regards to non star wars stuff.

Oh here's another thing that bothers me with regards to collecting:
People who bid ridiculous amounts of money for MODERN Star Wars stuff on eBay! With the exception of just a RARE few exclusives, nothing else should go for more than a couple of dollars over what the original cost was. YOU ARE FEEDING INTO THE SCALPER MENTALITY!!!

maatu

03-21-2006, 12:17 PM

i don't know. maybe to many repackages of figures. tired of all the different clones. if they were not shown in the movie. don't make them. why is commander cody smaller than the clone soldiers.he look stupid this way. where are the figures . i am tired of going to the flea market and seeing dumb prices. i saw a red arc clone trooper from clone wars going for $75 bucks. the guy will never sell it at that.

starwarsfan1

03-21-2006, 07:31 PM

My problem prior to the Saga line was never being able to find the figures I needed. Ever since the new line has started to come out Ive been getting my figures from a freind in California at retail pricing maybe 2-3 weeks before they start hitting the stores. So I can happily say that I no longer have any collecting problems.:D:thumbsup:

figrin bran

03-21-2006, 09:51 PM

i always lose accessories and my jedi figures often fall off the shelves and their saber blades break in the process.

Bossk77

03-21-2006, 10:09 PM

My issues:

1) I live in Oregon, you can never find anything because the wharehouses dont send stuff here.

2)Distribution as a whole both by Hasbro and to the store. If they put equal amounts of each figure in each case, and made more available it would be easyer, figuratively to get every figure in each wave.

3) Declining value of vintage figures. I agree with what was previously said, scalpers are driving up the prices of modern figures and vintage figures have taken a header in value, dispite the fact that ones in good to great shape are harder to come by every year that passes.

4) They dont make the figures we want, and when they do, the quailty sucks, yes that includes articuation, paint, and sculpt.

My problem is, I just don't have enough money to keep collecting everything I would like to get. I'm not talking about the choppers or the transformers, I am talking about the GG busts, GG statues, 3 3/4 figures, sideshows 12" line and so fourth.

Slicker

03-22-2006, 11:21 AM

My problem is, I just don't have enough money to keep collecting everything I would like to get. I'm not talking about the choppers or the transformers, I am talking about the GG busts, GG statues, 3 3/4 figures, sideshows 12" line and so fourth.You hit the nail on the head Frett. I feel the same way. I'd really like to get the higher end items but I just don't want to sacrifice my 3 3/4" collection to do it. I really like how the smaller figures look so I believe that I'll just stick to them.

wedge1968

03-22-2006, 07:25 PM

Bossk77,

I have noticed that this board is a great place to find help when you need it. It is great to have a place to be able to share ideas and toys and whatever else.

Turbowars

03-22-2006, 07:57 PM

BobaFrett and Slicker I was just going to post the $ issue. As time goes on $ seems to be getting more and more of a problem. Everything is getting more expensive while my rate of pay only goes up a buck and a half a year if I'm lucky. I hate being an adult.:yes:

bobafrett

03-22-2006, 10:16 PM

BobaFrett and Slicker I was just going to post the $ issue. As time goes on $ seems to be getting more and more of a problem. Everything is getting more expensive while my rate of pay only goes up a buck and a half a year if I'm lucky. I hate being an adult.:yes:

Me two. I do like some of the benefits of being an adult, like having my own place, make my own rules, I can leave the towel on the bathroom floor if I want, but there is also financial responsibility that goes along with it, not to mention having to work to pay bills, and try to collect what you can. Being as I am 40+ years old, I am looking to try to go toward more adult collectibles, but dang it is expensive.

Jayspawn

03-22-2006, 11:08 PM

I have a few...

- Same as bobafrett, I can afford most High-End collectibles. However space for me is always an issue, display space that is. What I need is a HUGE house -which I cannot have immediatly. So thats frusterating.

- I gave up all the current figures to collect High-End collectibles and concentrate on completing my Vintage set. Finding certain figures in good shape and accessories is always an ongoing battle.

- ComicCon is always a frusterating time because the Gentle Giant always has an awesome Exclusive which is always expensive to track down and purchase. Its a big headache I always get once a year and for once- I don't want that.

InsaneJediGirl

03-23-2006, 10:35 PM

-Money.Never enough of it :)

-Poor distribution/cant find anything

-Exclusives-I normally stay away from them now unless its an amazing product

Figures themselves- Not the ones I want (EU and other unmades) but when they do get made the figures are crappy or I cant find them.

DarkArtist

03-24-2006, 11:07 AM

My biggest problem is money and space. I have a one bedroom apartment that my wife and I share, so space is limited. Money is tight as of now being unemployed. So collecting has taken a step back.

As far as lack of product, it's hit or miss. At times I can find all the figures I want, other times, the pegs are as barren as the desert.

Lowly Bantha Cleaner

03-24-2006, 03:27 PM

My biggest problem is money and space. I have a one bedroom apartment that my wife and I share, so space is limited. Money is tight as of now being unemployed. So collecting has taken a step back.

As far as lack of product, it's hit or miss. At times I can find all the figures I want, other times, the pegs are as barren as the desert.

Space is a big issue with me too. I still have some room for me to add to my collection, but what happens 10 years from now when I have added umpteen thousand more things? I keep my collection in boxes downstairs in our cellar, but a large chunk of it stays in my bedroom. I have things on my dressers, and even 2 cabinets dedicated to storing them, but I have all my vehicles and such just sitting stacked three or four high (but stacked neat) on the floor. Lord knows what I have crawling underneath there (I've killed two silverfish in my room the last week). :eek:

Also, finding places that sell Star Wars toys in my area is a big challenge. There is a Wal-Mart less than five minutes away from my house, but I like to avoid that place at all costs. Targets, Toys R Us, and Kay-Bees are all at least a half hour away, which isn't too bad, but it would be more convenient if there were those stores in my town.

El Chuxter

03-24-2006, 04:40 PM

Ditto money and space. I'd LOVE, for example, to get the animated Barriss maquette, but there's no way I can justify spending that much. I'd be a dead man as soon as my wife saw the bill.

Slicker

03-24-2006, 05:41 PM

Another thing for me is getting up early enough to find toys. I work during the night so I get out of work at 7 in the morning and by that time I'm dead tired and could care less about toy hunting and when I finally crawl out of bed I don't feel like going out either so I usually wait until the weekend if I hunt at all.

wedge1968

03-25-2006, 01:13 PM

Yeah, space is a HUGE problem for me. By huge, I mean marriage threatening. I think that my plan right now is to hope that I can survive the next two years until I can get us out from under my wife's debts and then build an addition or buy another house.

trandoshan666

03-25-2006, 04:03 PM

Lack of space and poor distribution. Where I live, the ROTS stuff was plentiful and frequently updated. These days, it's much more of a challenge to find anything and ebay's generally way too expensive. So far I've been fortunate enough to find everything, but the way the figures are distributed has made this hobby far more competitive than it has to be.

sergiurusu

08-02-2006, 04:18 AM

Lack of space and NO distibution at all. Living in Eastern Europe makes it VERY hard for a SW collector. Even if I find some SW items in the stores their prices will be higher than on other countries. Then talking about shipping...no more words... And till next year more than 95% of my collection has to stay in boxes due to the lack of diaplying space in my room.

DarkArtist

08-02-2006, 06:43 PM

my problem is lack of space and money. There are so many new and cool things being pumped out by the various toy companies that i want but just don't have the dough for.

figrin bran

08-03-2006, 12:56 AM

seems like i posted earlier in this thread months ago but another problem for me is being an opener and yet still keeping some of the cards. because of that, i'm running out of space and so pretty soon, i'll just have to throw all the cards away just to make room for all the stuff i'll buy in the future. it doesn't help my space situation too that i have lots of bulky musical equipment like amps and pedals everywhere in my room.

2-1B

08-03-2006, 02:05 AM

Jonna, it was in 1997, silly. :crazed:

I meant to say Patient Zero. :crazed:

Luuuuuuke

08-04-2006, 03:07 PM

I have to say space too. I only really collect Star Wars(mostly basic figures with a focus on moderate troop building) and Lord of the Rings(both Toybiz and Armies of Middle Earth). Even with the death of the last two lines, I only have enough to display either SOME of my Star Wars items, or SOME of my LOTR items. Not both. And that's despite the fact that I'm an opener.

The real big problem is not so much money, as I can afford to collect without being put out too much, but the fact that collecting takes time. And being married and having a small child, time taken for collecting is time taken away from family. If finding stuff was easy, it wouldn't be much of a problem. But it's not, so I have to think about the time I spend more.

Ji'dai

08-08-2006, 08:14 AM

Declining brick-and-mortar retail market is a big problem. Stores have either closed or have reduced the variety and quantity of product due to online competition.

I dislike ordering action figures online since I prefer to check paint jobs before I buy.

Storage space is a problem but really hasn't affected my buying habits too much. I'm an opener and loose toys usually take up less room anway.